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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/85406
Description
Title
The Evolution of Mate Choice in Spadefoot Toads
Author(s)
Pfennig, Karin Susan
Issue Date
1999
Doctoral Committee Chair(s)
Brawn, Jeffrey D.
Jeffrey K. Conner
Department of Study
Biology
Discipline
Biology
Degree Granting Institution
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Degree Level
Dissertation
Keyword(s)
Biology, Zoology
Language
eng
Abstract
A second controversial topic in understanding how sexual selection works is explaining why males often form breeding aggregations. This behavior seems paradoxical, because, by clustering with competitors, males may reduce their reproductive success. I examined male aggregation behavior in spadefoot toads. In phonotaxis experiments, males associated with a stimulus simulating a conspecific calling male, when given a choice between conspecific and heterospecific calls. When males were presented with different conspecific calls, poor-condition males associated with the stimulus preferred by females, whereas good-condition males associated with the stimulus not preferred by females. Thus, although males aggregate with conspecifics, they adjust their positions relative to competitors depending on their condition, thereby potentially enhancing their reproductive success.
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